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Anton Gerashchenko is an official advisor and a former deputy minister at the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, ex-member of the Ukrainian parliament. Cooperation - @Tatiana_Pravda
‼️Russian war is waged on oil.
Everyone knows that. Pretending the Russian shadow fleet doesn't exist is strategic hypocrisy.
It's time to close the straits for the Russian shadow fleet.
An aggressor country cannot use the rules of the civilized world to its advantage - to destroy that world and international law.
Stepan the cat from Kharkiv has a Christmas tree and is in a Christmas mood.
What about you?
President of Türkiye Erdogan:
"If the conditions were different when the borders of the First World War were drawn in our region, what would have happened? There is a high probability that cities/regions such as Aleppo, Idlib, Damascus would have been our provinces as well as Hatay or Urfa."
There is data that the Russian shadow fleet has over 200 vessels.
Russia uses old tankers to bypass sanctions and earn billions of dollars in oil exports - reportedly, in 2023 its oil revenue was about $188 billion.
These vessels don't have appropriate insurance, have a very confusing ownership structure and are about 17% of the global oil tanker fleet.
Russian oil revenues finance the war against Ukraine.
Russia's shadow fleet is the elephant in the room that everyone knows about. There are efforts to fight it but they are not sufficient.
It's time for strong, decisive actions against Russia's shadow fleet.
Russia (with China's support) is turning into a Superbacteria.
Due to indecisiveness and compromises regarding Russia, which is essentially a cancerous tumor, Russia is developing resistance – becoming more resilient, more destructive. And finding a cure is becoming increasingly difficult.
Oil depot in Orel, Russia continues burning after a drone attack last night.
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I would like to share the opinion of Belarusian expert Ihar Tyshkevych on the situation on the African continent today in the context of the influence of other countries and regions. I would be grateful for comments and links to additional information on this important topic.
In recent years, Russia has significantly increased its influence in sub-Saharan Africa. The results of this policy have been unpleasant news for the U.S. and the EU, for example:
1️⃣Problems with the uranium mining business of the French nuclear fuels company Orano in Niger.
2️⃣The termination of the agreement on military cooperation between France and Chad, the statement of the president of Senegal about the "inexpediency" of the French military presence in his country.
3️⃣Negative voting of a significant part of African states on sensitive issues for the U.S. and EU in international organizations.
4️⃣Forced withdrawal of U.S. troops from all three military bases in Niger, including the drone base that was "in charge" of the entire northern part of the continent. Moreover, two of the three former American bases were soon occupied by the Russian military and PMCs.
But it would be wrong to state that Russia "controls" processes in most of the continent's states. In fact, while Russian influence is considerable in a few countries on the continent, regional leaders, as well as China, have a very significant influence.
◾️The Chinese approach was to localize a number of industries (think technological cooperation) and invest in energy and transport. The so-called "stadium diplomacy" can also be mentioned - the construction of sports, research, and cultural facilities with their transfer "as a gift" to the country "from the Chinese people." And, finally, education aspects - the number of African students in China has increased 8 times from 2012 to 2022.
◾️EU and U.S. investments, for the most part, did not concern the areas of industrial development, technology transfer, and human capital. Humanitarian issues were addressed through international organizations. The support of civil society was, in one way or another, linked to the issues of building a democratic (European-style) model of political order. All this allowed local political elites to claim the "neo-colonial" nature of "Western policy."
◾️Moscow entered the media and the area of political technologies. At the same time, it was actively developing the humanitarian and educational component. And, given the media factor, it was quite easy to transform a number of manifestations of anti-colonial sentiments into "anti-Western" ones.
November saw several significant visits by European politicians to African countries: President Biden visited Angola, where he also met with the leaders of Zambia, Congo, and Tanzania, and the French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot visited Chad and Ethiopia.
President Biden announced $1 billion in aid to families affected by the drought and a $0.5 billion loan to extend a railway that will connect the coast of Angola with Congo and Zambia. This is direct assistance in the area of food security and direct investment in industrial development.
During the visit of the French Foreign Minister, an intention was announced to lobby for the African countries to secure two permanent (!) seats in the UN Security Council.
Another important point is the rapid loss of Russia's share in the African arms sales market, starting from 2023. The percentage of Russian arms sold to the countries of the region fell from official 44% to 17-20% and less. France, China and Turkey are taking the place of Russia. A number of Eastern European states are trying to play. In addition, the competitors of Russia offer to the local market more modern systems and models than the old Soviet ones.
Thus, these new agreements will be unpleasant for Russia.
And therefore, the year 2025 will be an eventful year on the African continent.
Reportedly, these are Russian armed forces leaving Syria.
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The videos show Russians leaving Syria.
Russian troops from the military base in Tartus are moving in columns to the Russian Khmeimim air base where they are picked up by Il-76 cargo aircraft. Russians are also leaving their bases in the north of Syria - in Manbij and Kobanî.
📹: the Times journalist
Putin presented Kadyrov with the order "For Merit to the Fatherland" II class.
I wonder what he got in exchange. Kadyrov's loyalty must be expensive.
The British National Crime Agency (NCA) has exposed and disrupted two Russian money laundering networks, Smart and TGR Group, supporting serious and organized crime around the world.
Among the areas of activity of these networks were drug trafficking, ransomware, and espionage. 84 people were arrested, as well as over £20 million ($25,3 million) in cash and cryptocurrency were seized as a result of the operation conducted by NCA.
◾️ Ekaterina Zhdanova, who was sanctioned last year by OFAC for allegedly helping ransomware groups receive and launder illicit funds, headed Smart. She is said to have worked alongside the TGR boss, George Rossi, whose location is unknown to the international law enforcement coalition.
◾️ According to investigation, Smart and TGR have particularly strong links into the Russian financial sector and, whilst funds were often routed through the Middle East, their combined global reach extends through over 30 countries.
◾️ The networks used their global reach to launder money for transnational crime groups responsible for trafficking drugs and firearms into the UK and around the world. They also helped Russian elites to illegally bypass financial restrictions to invest money in the UK and funded espionage operations.
◾️ The idea behind the scheme was that the networks collect funds in one country and make the equivalent value available in another, often by swapping cryptocurrency for cash. In 4 months, the networks managed to organize cash handovers in 55 different locations across England, Scotland, Wales, and the Channel Islands.
◾️ The NCA said the networks also helped the Ryuk ransomware group, which was sanctioned by the UK in 2023, to export at least £27 million ($34,2 million) from 149 British victims, including hospitals, schools, businesses, and local authorities, although, the group's true impact may be much higher.
"Operation Destabilise has exposed Russian kleptocrats, drug gangs and cyber criminals - all of whom relied on the flow of dirty money. The UK and its allies will continue to work together to crack down on illicit finance and the criminality it enables," British Minister of State for Security, Dan Jarvis, said.
Source: https://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/news/operation-destabilise-nca-disrupts-multi-billion-russian-money-laundering-networks-with-links-to-drugs-ransomware-and-espionage-resulting-in-84-arrests
"If Ukraine can't maintain their sovereignty, then no nation has sovereignty and we're back to the Age of Empires" - highly recommend this video by RealJakeBroe.
That's a good overview of the past 100 years or so that explains the current situation well.
❗️Several drones have flown over sensitive industrial facilities and the Ramstein air base in Germany - Der Spiegel
According to a confidential report by German security authorities, there were numerous drone sightings in the evening hours of December 3 and 4 over the air base, but no drone pilot was found. The US Army confirmed the suspicious drone flights.
The newspaper also reported drone sightings in recent weeks over locations belonging to the German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall and the chemicals group BASF.
Source: https://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/spionage-drohnen-ueber-ramstein-rheinmetall-und-basf-gesichtet-a-e97bfa4c-e7fb-4d33-9a69-9e109968787b
Russia is not seeking a ceasefire but peace which will come after Moscow's conditions are met, Peskov said.
The Kremlin continues to insist that it is not ready to negotiate.
A video appeared reportedly showing Russians moving their equipment to the naval base in Tartus and the Khmeimim air base.
Earlier, this equipment was located at small Russian bases in different places in Syria. According to local sources, columns of military equipment have already moved from the south of Homs towards Tartus.
It seems that Russia is making all the necessary preparations for the complete evacuation of its military bases in Syria. Russia's Mediterranean forces have already left the Syrian port of Tartus.
Security guarantees for Russian troops received from the new rulers of Syria after the downfall of Bashar al-Assad most likely concern only the withdrawal of Russian troops, "not their permanent deployment."
Also, yesterday Russian media were spreading the news that the Russian Defense Ministry had an "unofficial understanding" with the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham organisation that Russian forces could remain at the Khmeimim air base and the port in Tartus.
The situation seems to have changed.
Russian Telegram channels report a drone attack on Russian Sochi and air defense working in the Black Sea.
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When we hear that Russia and Ukraine need to just reach an agreement - as if Ukraine is as much to blame for the war as Russia - that is not peace through strength. This is peace through appeasing the aggressor.
Ukrainians want peace more than anyone. And we want to survive. Believe us.
"Russian economy is growing despite unprecedented sanctions" Putin said today.
What is really growing in unprecedented terms under Putin's rule: cemeteries of Russian soldiers and the ruble-dollar exchange rate.
"Here are these boys, just a month ago, there were only nine graves here. That was a month ago, and today they lie in two rows already," - a Russian volunteer Yekaterina Dvoryankina filmed this in Tolyatti, Samara region. She showed a huge number of Russian soldiers buried at one of the local cemeteries. And that's just a small part. The rest will stay forever in Ukrainian fields.
"I am protecting my children. My family chose Ukraine."
By day, Vladyslav Tsukurov is a judge, and by night, he swaps his gown for body armor and a machine gun and helps the Air Defense Forces defend the Kyiv region from enemy air attacks.
Vladyslav joined the Mriia ("Dream") volunteer unit, which consists of fellow judges, law enforcement officials, and other public servants who, despite their reservations and regular jobs, decided to contribute to the defense of Ukraine.
📹: DW
Abandoned even his own relatives – Reuters on Bashar al-Assad's Escape from Syria
▪️Assad's aides, officials from the administration, military personnel, and even the relatives were unaware of his plans to leave the country.
▪️According to Reuters, just a few hours before his escape, Assad met with about 30 senior army officers and security officials, assuring them that Russia had already sent military aid and urging them to hold their positions.
An aide from Assad's inner circle reported that after finishing his work, the former president told his office manager he was heading home, but went to the airport instead.
▪️Assad didn't even inform his younger brother Maher of his departure. Maher managed to escape by helicopter to Iraq and from there to Russia.
▪️Assad's maternal cousins, Ehab and Eyad Makhlouf, attempted to flee from captured Damascus to Lebanon, but their car was ambushed along the way.
There is information that Ehab was shot dead and Eyad was wounded, though this has not been officially confirmed.
The Reuters article with more details on how Assad ran away might be a useful read for Putin's inner circle.
How and where will Putin run to? Your thoughts?
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/assads-final-hours-syria-deception-despair-flight-2024-12-13/
Medvedev has just stated that he considers it possible for new regions to become part of Russia.
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The parliament of South Korea supported the bill to impeach the president.
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Drones attacked an oil depot in Oryol, Russia last night.
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Georgia's parliament, with only deputies from the Georgian Dream party sitting, passed fast-tracked bills restricting participation in protests - Jam News
It is now prohibited to cover the face in any way and use pyrotechnics, lasers, and flashlights when participating in public gatherings. The fine is 2,000 lari ($712). The same fine will be imposed for blocking roads.
The fine for graffiti and protest inscriptions was increased to 1,000 lari ($356) and for repeated violations to 2,000 lari. For demonstrations with violations of rules, the fine increased to 5,000 lari ($1780), for organizers - up to 15,000 lari ($5340) or administrative arrest.
Also, because of a special amendment to the existing law on the rights of the former chiefs of state, President Salome Zourabichvili will be stripped of the right to state protection after her office term on December 16 ends.
"I really do believe this [war in Ukraine] is going to get solved within the next few months because the only person who can do that is President Donald J. Trump." - special envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg.
Kellogg also said it wouldn't surprise him if Trump invites Putin and Zelenskyy to Washington "to hammer out a deal" as "he can make such a bold move."
The question is not ending the war by itself. It is ending it with a just and sustainable peace that really matters.
The moment of the Russian missile attack on Zaporizhzhia. The air raid alert still sounded when the Russian ballistic missile hit.
11 people were killed by Russia that day.
Russian propagandists:
"We are not going to fight the NATO bloc with conventional weapons. In terms of many combat and operational capabilities, the Alliance surpasses us a lot. They have not even come close to giving Ukraine everything they have. If they decide to get involved, we will use special weapons against them."
Syria is celebrating the downfall of the Assad regime, with demonstrations taking place across the country.
Friday prayers were held at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, which was attended by the interim head of Syria's transitional government, Mohammed al-Bashir.
Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kali also arrived in Damascus and prayed at the city’s historic Umayyad Mosque.
Shooting down a Russian cruise missile from an Igla MANPADS in the morning in the western part of Ukraine.
Glory!
"Today, Ukraine is facing a choice: to be with Russia or to disappear from the world map forever." – Medvedev told the International Life magazine after his trip to China.
It looks like an ultimatum and a refusal to start negotiations…